A. On the second reporting date and the third reporting date of each year, each local school board of a school district and governing body of a state-chartered charter school shall report to the state transportation director, upon forms furnished by the state transportation director, the following information concerning the school district's or state-chartered charter school's operation on each respective reporting date of the current year:

(1) the number and designation of school bus routes in operation in the school district;

(2) the number of miles traveled by each school bus on each school bus route, showing the route mileage in accordance with the type of road surface traveled;

(3) the number of students, including special education students, transported on each reporting date of the current year and adjusted for special education students on December 1;

(4) the projected number of students to be transported in the next school year;

(5) the seating capacity, age and mileage of each bus used in the school district for student transportation; and

(6) the number of total miles traveled for each school district's or state-chartered charter school's per capita feeder routes.

B. Each local school board of a school district and governing body of a state-chartered charter school maintaining a school bus route shall make further reports to the state transportation director at other times specified by the state transportation director.

C. The state transportation director shall certify to the secretary that the allocations from the transportation distributions to each school district and state-chartered charter school are based upon the transportation distribution formula established in the Public School Code calculated and distributed for the entire school year using an average of the amounts reported on the second reporting date and third reporting date of the prior school year, and subject to audit and verification.

D. The department shall make periodic installment payments to school districts and state-chartered charter schools during the school year from the transportation distributions, based upon the allocations certified by the state transportation director.

History: 1953 Comp., § 77-6-24, enacted by Laws 1967, ch. 16, § 78; 1974, ch. 73, § 2; 1978, ch. 127, § 5; 1979, ch. 305, § 4; 1988, ch. 64, § 33; 1995, ch. 208, § 3; 1999 (1st S.S.), ch. 11, § 2; 2006, ch. 94, § 19; 2010, ch. 116, § 7; 2015, ch. 57, § 1.

Repeals. — Laws 2001, ch. 350, § 2, repealed Laws 1999 (1st S.S.), ch. 11, § 7, effective June 15, 2001, which would have repealed 22-8-29 on July 1, 2001.

Cross references. — For transportation of students generally, see 22-16-1 NMSA 1978 et seq.

For transfer of powers and duties of the former state superintendent, see 9-24-15 NMSA 1978.

For the program support and student transportation division of the public education department, see 9-24-4 NMSA 1978.

The 2015 amendment, effective July 1, 2015, changed the dates for reporting school transportation information to the public education department and changed the basis for determining transportation distribution allocations; in the introductory sentence of Subsection A, deleted "Prior to November 15 of each year" and added "On the second reporting date and the third reporting date of each year", and after "operation on", deleted "the first" and added "each respective"; in Subsection A, Paragraph (3), after "the number of students", added "including special education students"; and in Subsection C, after "Public School Code", deleted "The allocations for the first six months of a school year shall be based upon the tentative transportation budget of the school district or state-chartered charter school for the current fiscal year. Allocations to a school district or state-chartered charter school for the remainder of the school year shall adjust the amount received by the school district or state-chartered charter school so that it equals the amount the school district or state-chartered charter school is entitled to receive for the entire school year based upon the November 15 report" and added "calculated and distributed for the entire school year using an average of the amounts reported on the second reporting date and third reporting date of the prior school year."

Temporary provisions. — Laws 2015, ch. 57, § 2 provided that notwithstanding the provisions of Laws 2015, ch. 57, for the transportation distribution for fiscal year 2016, the allocation shall be based upon the tentative transportation budget of the school district or state-chartered charter school for fiscal year 2016. Allocations to a school district or state-chartered charter school for the remainder of the school year shall adjust the amount received by the school district or state-chartered charter school so that it equals the amount the school district or state-chartered charter school is entitled to receive based upon the number of students transported on the first reporting date of fiscal year 2016 and adjusted for special education students on December 1, and subject to audit and verification.

The 2010 amendment, effective May 19, 2010, in Subsection A, in the introductory sentence after "operation on the", deleted "fortieth day of school" and added "first reporting date of the current year"; and in Subsection A(3), after "transported on the", deleted "fortieth day of school" and added "first reporting date of the current year".

The 2006 amendment, effective July 1, 2007, added the governing body of a state-chartered charter school in Subsections A and B and added state-chartered schools in Subsection A, Paragraph (6) of Subsection A, and in Subsections C and D.

The 1999 amendment, effective May 21, 1999, in Subsection A added "and adjusted for special education students on December 1" at the end of Paragraph (3), deleted former Paragraph (5), which read "the percentage of unpaved or unimproved roads utilized by school buses in the school district; and" and redesignated the subsequent paragraph accordingly, substituted "used" for "utilized" in Paragraph (5), and added Paragraph (6).

The 1995 amendment, effective July 1, 1995, in Subsection A, in the introductory paragraph, deleted "maintaining a school bus route" following "school district" and substituted "the district's operation on the fortieth day of school" for "the school year to and including October 30", deleted "which have been approved by the state transportation director" from the end of Paragraph (1), deleted former Paragraph (2) relating to the number and capacity of the buses operating on the district, redesignated former Paragraphs (3) and (4) as Paragraphs (2) and (3), substituted "on the fortieth day of school" for "on each school bus route" in Paragraph (3), and added Paragraphs (4) to (6); deleted "concerning the information required by this section" following the first "director" in Subsection B, and rewrote Subsection C.

The 1988 amendment, effective May 18, 1988, deleted the last sentence of Subsection B regarding required periods for reporting; in Subsection C, substituted "state superintendent" for "director" near the beginning of the first sentence and "state superintendent" for "director of the public school finance division" at the end of the first sentence; and substituted "department" for "director" and deleted "to him" following "certified" in Subsection D.